Biography Books > P Biography Books

Advantages: Funny in parts, an easy read, entertaining in some ways.
Disadvantages: Appears rushed, a bit of a let down, stick to the day job.

...copy I have been reading the other. No doubt he will be flogging one copy eventually. If anyone hasn't heard of Peter Kay I will elaborate slightly. Peter Kay Peter Kay is a thirty something, chubby comedian from Bolton, Lancashire. He was born and brought up in Bolton , where he still lives today. As with a lot of comedians he went through his young years trying to be the school funny man, entertainer and general class ...
...jobs, such as working for the supermarket Netto and in a Bingo Hall, plus the characters that he met along the way, provided much of the backbone for his comedy. He won the North-West comedian of the year in 1996 and launched himself on the comedy circuit. By 1997 he had won Channel 4's "So you think you're funny" competition and later was nominated for the Perrier Award. Since this time he has won plenty of other awards and has gradually become ... Read review

Advantages: Funny, insightful
Disadvantages: Not many

If you have followed his football career you will know what you are in for. Wrong, just as you think this book will be jokes, pranks and drink, you'll find he has surprised you again. Yeh he tells us his pranks on and off the field. His bare face cheek to some of the footballing greats. And it had me in fits of giggles, slight shock but still typical Gazza. But what I really liked is that he opened up so we could see the bloke behind the smiles. ...
...door and realise that like all celebs he's a typical bloke with the same typical problems we all have. Which is nice to relate to. He has had some issues and I'm not going to voice my opinion on the man as you should buy this book and do it your self. Top book, insightful, comical and delightful, with a hint of sadness. ... Read review

Advantages: Occasional funny stories and glimpses into Billy
Disadvantages: Not much insight; Name dropping; Wanders off

Following hot on heels from the success of 'Billy', Pamela Stephenson's recounting of her husband Billy Connolly's life and how it moulded him, came a sequel of sorts. Bravemouth (so-called because it's the nickname attributed to the Big Yin by Eric Idle, a neighbour in LA don't you know) is a bringing of matters right up to date, with the story of living with Billy for a year - a particular year, this being the one containing his 60th birthday. ...
...shall we say 'modest' start, with an introduction informing us of how well Billy was received and tales of people writing to the celebrity couple after its release to let them know how much Billy's story had inspired them after having gone through similar turmoil. Yes, yes, well done, can we get on with the story please? For a book supposedly with Billy Connolly as its central precept it comes as something of a surprise to learn that Ms Stephenson ... Read review

Advantages: Inspirational, Emotional account of personal desire versus governmental struggles
Disadvantages: None, for the book itself

...biography of the author's transition from a member of a remote Burmese Village Tribe to an English Student at Cambridge University UK. The author was born in Burma in 1967 and spent the first 22 years of his life there, before moving to Cambridge in 1989, after a meeting with a Cambridge don a year earlier. The coincidences and likelihood of such a meeting to happen in the way it did (and as the reader will learn as the story unfolds) seem almost ...
...such an existence so removed from Western society. The Padaung tribe are an extremely remote tribe and their beliefs are founded completely in ghosts and folklore, never having experienced any kind of modern living. The tribal women are noted for their elongated ‘giraffe’ necks, possibly an optical illusion due to their tradition of wearing many rings around their necks and their arms. Pascal is somewhat of a celebrity in his village and in his family, ... Read review

Advantages: Interesting in places, informative, an easy read
Disadvantages: Some bits are dull and repetitive

...Patsy Palmer, so I borrowed All of Me from the library. Patsy is most known for her role as Bianca in EastEnders - you remember, the one with really long red hair who was married to Ricky? Yes, that's the one. The book is 310 pages long and tells Patsy's story from childhood through to the end of 2006. She is now thirty-five years old, married with three children. Her daughter shares the same name as one of my daughters - Emilia - which is one reason ...
...book's title. If you put All of Me into a search, you will find it has been used as the title for umpteen books, albums and films over the years. Even Patsy's EastEnders co-star Barbara Windsor has an autobiography called All of Me! So it is rather clichéd and makes it a bit dull. It is also a bit ridiculous, as there is no way a book could really tell everything! As with every autobiography, this is the edited highlights. There will be some things ... Read review